Discussion

Suffering Succotash - KC

I was so excited to try this place (despite the good smells coming from Winslow's at the Market, we headed to Succotash). I loved the kitschy, mish-mash décor, the rainbow layer cake in the case (I couldn’t find it anywhere on the menu), the hot-pink chandelier, the Melmac plates and the plastic tumblers that reminded me of drinking tea at my grandma’s, the hipster Beatnik staff, the opportunity to people-watch.

We arrived over the lunch hour and after a short 20 minute wait we were seated by a host that seemed totally annoyed at having to show us to our table. We sat in the back, near the wrought iron spiral staircase that lead to the restroom on the second floor (and continued on down to the basement with only an apron tied across to discourage people from going on down). We watched several people make the treacherous climb and decent. One elderly woman fell on the last couple of steps and caught herself at the bottom of the first floor. She almost tumbled down the basement stairs. YIKES!!!

We placed our order with a super sweet, if somewhat frazzled, server. We waited forever for our food, which seems to be a common experience at Succotash. That was fine because we had the time, but I wouldn’t suggest Succotash for a quick lunch.

We got great humor when our food arrived, our server said, “I see you need silverware, I’ll be right back with some.” We waited and waited (probably for five minutes before we saw her with another customer) and waited. Finally, so we could enjoy our food before it got cold we ate with our tea spoons. We eventually flagged down another server and three-quarters of the way through our meal our server arrived with silverware.

The portions were huge. Half of the plate was loaded with fried potatoes, which I found soggy. I had the BLT; it consisted of two fried eggs with cheese, two little slices of bacon, lots ‘o field greens, a couple slices of tomatoes, whole wheat bread and pesto aioli. I didn’t really care for the aioli and I felt like it coupled with the eggs overwhelmed to two little slices of bacon. The bread was great! What I really wanted, though, was a BLT and I would call this more of an ELT.

My husband got an omelet and the potatoes, which he thoroughly enjoyed.

I don’t know if I would come back or not. Perhaps for the people watching or the rainbow cake that I am so curious about.

I've only been to Succotash once, for lunch, and it was quite a while ago. I haven't been back since. We were seated in the back near the staircase you mentioned, and were mostly ignored by our server as well. She didn't check back at all after the food arrived, no refills on drinks, nothing, until we flagged someone down to ask for her to bring the bill. My grilled cheese and apple sandwich was cold, and the huge slabs of cheese had barely melted when it was appraently briefly grilled, probably at least ten minutes before it was served. My dining companion's food was equally unremarkable, though I don't recall what she had. We didn't bother with dessert after that, even though we were tempted by that seven layer cake.

I had a decent breakfast at Succotash. It has been several years since I went there myself. I recall having something along the lines of a peach and walnut pancake with a couple strips of bacon on the side. I thought the food was tasty but the decor was not for me. In addition, I felt the drive was too long from my home for the overall experience. I would probably eat there on a semi-regular basis (assuming the service was good and the food quality is still up to par) and I still worked near downtown.

We were there Saturday too. We had a longer than expected wait, and I could see how some would have problems with the service, but it didn't bother me too much. Certainly not good service, though. At times simply odd.

I was disappointed in the food. The pancakes were terrible, I thought. Ridiculously huge and with an IHOP-like flavor. My banana bread French toast was quite good. The bacon was good. My scrambled eggs were quite bad. Really bad. Flat, brown, overcooked, and little flavor. I mean, scrambled eggs? C'mon. Biscuits and gravy got a thumbs down from my father-in-law, while the smoked salmon wrap got a thumbs up from my mother-in-law, but I didn't press her, and she almost always gives an initial thumbs up. The home fries looked pretty good.

It's unfortunate, though, because food aside, I really dig the place, or at least the idea of the place. I love the bustling City Market on a Saturday morning. I'm cool with the quirky decor and the staircase. I'm just not sure I want to eat there again.

Oh, and I ordered a "lemonade"...I think the menu called it "best ever lemonade" or something. Ennhhh... First of all, it wasn't lemonade. They processed a whole pear, a small, rindless lemon, and a small chunk of ginger. The flavor was okay, but dominated by pear, and too much tannin from the unripe pear skin. Should have been colder too. And lemonade.

We were there for lunch recently. Both our sandwiches had about 3 inches of spinach packed in them, it was strange. Just not very tasty at all. Our service was really pretty good. Unfortunately, the place needed some serious cleaning. Our server even commented on that very subject! I do think breakfast is the best bet. We love the market and try to support all the places there. Hopefully Succotash is just having some staffing issues that will be resolved.

We've been once, for breakfast, and the food was hit and miss for us. I had some kind of caramel pear pecan french toast that was really good. I think the rest of my dining companions weren't too impressed with their breakfast items. I like the idea of the place, but it is super dirty and our waiter had EXTREME body odor- makes it tough to enjoy your food! I think they pride themselves on having hippy dippy servers, so I don't think there is ever going to be a big change in staffing.

I have been 5+ times, all weekday lunches plus one dinner (which I don't know if they do anymore, they used to have theme dinners). My service experience on weekdays has generally been slightly subpar, never fantastic. I would avoid Saturdays unless I had at least 1.5 hours to kill, which many do when they visit the market. I think the space cadet aspect of the service fits with the overall vibe of the place anyway, not that I'm excusing it. And except for the rainbow cake, the food doesn't make up for the service. Not sure why they don't hire more servers, the place is usually pretty busy. I would still pick this place over Delaware Cafe right outside the market because at least Succotash is trying to be unique.